The Truth Behind My "Family"

all pictures I use in this article (excluding the photo above) all belong to me. please do not take or use without permission.

Hi. I have a collection that most people would probably be weird to the innocent eye. This collection I have has been looked down upon by so many others.. but I will never be ashamed of it.

People say that it's creepy..

or even scary..

or even weird..

but I don't care.

It's my life. My choice. My passion.

This collection I have? It's not really that bad.

Trust.

The Collection

I collect reborn dolls. See. I told you it isn't that bad. It's just a doll collection that brings me happiness and comfort whenever they're with me.

Why I Collect These Dolls

Like a bunch of people in the reborn community, I use these dolls as a source of therapy for my own personal battles with mental illness. Reborn dolls are great sources of therapy for those with mental illnesses such as anxiety, depression, PTSD, etc.

For me, I mostly use my reborn dolls to help me battle with my depression and anxiety; having them by my side just help me feel less lonely than when I'm by myself. As I stated in a previous article, I have a service dog to help me survive through life on my own, but I also found comfort in these dolls as well. I don't know. There's just something about the idea of being "a mother" that I find comforting.. especially when the child in question isn't actually a breathing thing so I don't have to live in constant fear that I'm following in my own family's footsteps. I know they aren't real children, but it really does feel as if they are whenever I have them by my side.

The Start of Something New..

I began my love for the reborn community back in 2020 during the worldwide pandemic; my mom had just started hers and I immediately fell in love with her dolls. I just knew I had to find one of my own.

Of course when I first started collecting these types of dolls, I went in a completely wrong direction. Due to being extremely uneducated and new to the community, I do admit I did make a wrong turn and ordered a "reborn doll" off of Amazon at first. By the way, if you want a reborn doll- DO NOT go to Amazon for a doll. The "reborn dolls" on Amazon are basically factory knockoffs of real sculpts and there is absolutely zero details that come with the dolls made by the actual artists of these dolls. It costs a whole lot more money to get the real deal, but boy are they 1000% worth the cost.

Eventually, though, I finally got myself onto the right track. My mom had found an artist who made her own first reborn that had done an amazing job that I fell in love with. With the help from my mother, I got in contact with her to make me a baby of my own. That was how I received my very own Avery Luca; the preemie who changed my whole world.

The next baby I found was a bit bigger than the last. Someone was selling their "toddler reborn" on Facebook Marketplace for a discounted price and I just knew I had to have her.

Well.. technically, I had started watching YouTube videos people have made with their reborn dolls and discovered my absolute dream sculpt (the Arianna Awake). I was just lucky and fortunate enough to find someone selling that same sculpt secondhand just soon after. I couldn't lose this chance.

That was how I received my most special (and my first "bonded") baby; Isla Ana.

The next doll to be added to my collection was technically a hand-me-down from my mother. She had this doll she never truly felt a bond with, but I had fallen in love with him so I immediately took him in as my own. I guess you can say Baby Jay was the brother I adopted as my own.

My next baby was a tiny micro preemie. I absolutely love her to pieces and she is strictly my "display only" baby (I have two of them- keep reading on to read about my other).

I found Isadora listed on Facebook from someone who never truly bonded with her and knew from the second I saw a photo that I just needed this baby for my little "family". She's unique. She's different. She's special. I love her.

The next "little girl" I added to my collection was a sculpt that was dear to my heart (The June Awake). The main reason why I wanted the June Awake sculpt was because she closely resembled myself as a baby and I just had to have her.

Another sculpt that closely resembled me as a baby was the Maddie sculpt by Bonnie Brown, but my mom had already claimed that sculpt for her own personal collection so I claimed this one.

This was how I got my special girl, Serenity Anita.

My next doll is another one of my "display-only" dolls. She's a child sized doll that I absolutely adore, but she's more fragile than any of my other dolls so I am very strict about moving her around the place.

Ava Mae was a "boo-boo baby"; a boo boo baby are reborn dolls people sell at a discounted price due to a flaw they usually have or just because they didn't feel like the doll was worth being full priced - I definitely recommend getting yourself a boo boo baby if you can't afford a brand new baby because it's the same thing more well-suited for a smaller budget.

My next doll was yet another "boo boo baby" that my mom found for me after I had gotten scammed off another doll from another artist. Although the getting scammed part was heartbreaking and I don't wish it upon anyone, I loved finding this baby girl amongst the aftermath. She's definitely my special pink queen.

That's how Summer Rainn came into my life.

My next, and my most recent, baby boy is Jackson Avery; just like Isla, he's the other most bonded baby I have in my family. Usually, if you see me out with a baby I'm most likely going to have this boy by my side because he brings me the most comfort.

I have no idea what I would ever do if I didn't have this boy as a part of my collection.

My Not-So-Reborns

Although I know Amazon dolls aren't technically reborn dolls, I still found love in my three most beloved "Amazon dolls". They are child sized (39 inch) dolls that own my heart. Although I did sell the Amazon baby dolls to kids who wanted a reborn but had parents who didn't want to spend the money for a real one, I could never find myself to sell these beauties.

Let's meet them.

Izabella "Izzie" Marie

Izzie was my first "child-sized" doll in my collection. Before finding her on Facebook Marketplace, I didn't even realize these dolls came in sizes such as hers. As my "first-born", she will always carry a special place in my heart.

Calliope "Callie" Enya

I adopted Callie from my mom's friend who was clearing out space for new dolls and instantly fell in love with her.

I love being able to open my arms and allow her into my little family. It was kind of like she was rejected from her original "mommy" and I took her in as my very own to make her feel her happiest.

Emilia Rose

Out of the three of these, Emilia is definitely my most bonded and most special one. If I was able to take her out on outings with me, I most definitely would 1000%. No shame.

Outings

Taking a baby out on an outing brings me some kind of serotonin I'm sure not a lot of people would fully understand. I don't know.. I just love the idea of having a little child around with me being pushed in a stroller or carried on my arm as I go around the town.

I have taken my little family out with me to go grocery shopping, out to the park or the beach, to museums, or even just on little walks around the neighborhood. It's something I've grown obsessed with in the most recent times.

The Photo Gallery

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Thank you for taking the time to read my article. If you like this, feel free to go check out my other publications over on my profile. I write a mixture of articles, journals, and fictional stories (along with a multi-part story).

If you really like my work, feel free to subscribe so you can keep up with all my new works that come out.

Also.. if I introduced you to want a reborn doll of your own, welcome to the community.